Blonde-a-Bye.

When I began Bye Bye Beehive 350 days ago, I was a blonde.

Do doubt about it.

Now, my ombre hair is out in full-force.
Daniel, my fiancè, and I just had our engagement photos done.
It was really evident in the photo above that my natural color is no longer blonde.
Ash blonde? Maybe.
Warm brunette? Probably.
Weird.

I've been a blonde for about 24 of my 26 years of life.
This whole BBB thing has really made me re-evaluate everything when it comes to my hair.
I'm getting married in 66 days... and I'm considering not dyeing my hair for the wedding.
Just leaving it as-is.
EEK... too many decisions.

Still thinking about it, obviously.

What's your pick?

Ty-Over.

 
Is anyone else a HUGE fan of America's Next Top Model? My brother and I are basically obsessed with that show. We get together and watch it every week. Last year, for the ANTM Cycle 16 Finale, my brother even let me dress him up as Miss J. My brother is 18. I would post a picture of him modeling his Miss J. makeup and attire... but I'm fairly sure he would kill me...

... In fact, when I teased him that I was going to post this picture, he texted me right back and said, "I would be HONORED!" So clearly, I had to post it. See, that's what I mean. We are huge fans of ANTM. HUGE.

When I began BBB, a few people kept suggesting that I donate my hair after the year-long challenge is over as another way to give back to the community. At first, I thought it was a great idea... but I would be far too nervous to do it. I just don't know if I could put in all that work for a whole year (or more) just to give it away.

Then the idea hit me. What if I could get a Ty-Over? I know it's a long shot, but that would totally make chopping my hair off worth it. If you're not familiar with Ty-Overs, they're basically a make-over by Tyra. Some of the girls love them and embrace their new hair-do's, whereas others cry and throw hissy fits at losing a couple inches of hair. It's very comical, and Tyra and her team always make the BEST decisions when it comes to the make-over choices. It's like they just know what a person's best look will be. Now, there have been exceptions, like Molly's blonde weave on Cycle 16. But overall, Tyra knows what's up. She is fierce, people.

So I decided to reach out to Tyra via Twitter... the all-powerful resource. I tweeted a simple message. It read:

If Bye Bye Beehive #365project is successful, I want a @tyrabanks Ty-Over in the end! How cool would that be? I'd donate my hair for that!

I didn't think much of it at the time... but I'm serious now. Heck, who wouldn't do anything for a Ty-Over? It would be my dream-come-true. The perks are as follows:

1. I would get to meet Tyra. Banks. Oh. My. Goodness. She's my idol.
2. I would get a sweet Ty-Over.
3. My hair would be donated to Locks of Love.
4. Did I mention I would get to meet Tyra? Seriously. Dream. Come. True.

Tyra—I need this Ty-Over. It would be the coolest experience of my life. A chance to meet THE Tyra Banks, get a one-of-a-kind make-over, and the opportunity to make one person's dream a reality by donating my hair so it could be made into a wig.

In all seriousness, I know I'm a dork. It won't happen. But it sure is fun to pretend. And dream. And be a silly goof ball. 

PS>> YOU could possibly help! Tweet Tyra @tyrabanks and tell her how cool this would be!! Please!

All Hallows Eve.

Happy Halloween! To be quite honest, I'm not the biggest fan of Halloween (but I sure do love candy). I don't know what it is, but the whole dressing up thing just doesn't float my boat. I seem to never have any good ideas and I just never spend the time to think of anything creative. Oh, and I don't like to flaunt myself around town in my skivvies... no one needs to see that, and it just isn't in my personality to dress up like, well, a ho-bag. To put it bluntly.

Motivated by the haunting spirit of Halloween, I thought I'd share a costume compilation from the past and present. Beware... I'm a repeat offender. It's so embarrassing how anti-creative I am.

I hope you enjoy!


80's aerobics instructor. 2006.

For the life of me, I can't remember what I was in 2007. Probably an 80's aerobics instructor. Again. Or GASP! I might not have even dressed up at all. How uncool.

80's hair band rocker. 2008.

Witch. Obviously. 2008.

80's hair band rocker. Again. 2009.

In 2010, I was a witch. Again. No photo, sorry. Plus, I looked dreadful anyway... so why even bother sharing?

Vampire. 2011.

By chance, if you want to see my super-fun vampy nails that I did to go along with this costume, check them out here!

Witch. Again. October 31, 2011.



Three. Six. Five.

Oh boy. My 365-day project begins in a mere 4 hours. Scary. It's kind of embarrassing, but I really do put love, sweat and tears into doing my hair every day. Ok, maybe not tears, but definitely love and sweat. When I travel, I could leave behind everything and I would be OK, as long as I had my hairspray, teasing comb and blow dryer. It's not like I have fabulous hair or anything like that, either. I just usually try really hard to make it look nice. That being said, I'm so nervous that it just will not do anything without being teased or hair sprayed to death. I guess we will see what happens.

Today, as a means to kick-off this little challenge, I collected all of my hair products and piled them in a box.

I took the box with me to work and let my coworkers help themselves to my collection. It may not seem like a lot, but that box has everything a person with long, short, curly, straight, or processed hair may need. My personal favorite, Lamaur Sprayage II (the one in the paint-splattered can), is the hairspray that I have been using since I learned to do my hair. That stuff is awesome. I can spray on a whole can and my hair will still have bounce and be soft to the touch without moving an inch. I don't know how I'm going to live without it. Another favorite in the box is in a little gray bottle with a white cap. It is Living Proof's Full Thickening Cream. Wow. That stuff gives crazy-intense body with just the tiniest application.

On a regular basis I don't use too much product... but I figured it was best if I just got that stuff OUT of the house. I also plan on taking my blow dryer, straightener and curling iron and putting them in a place that will be out of reach and very inconvenient to access for the next year.

In addition to getting rid of my beloved styling products, I also thought it was appropriate to initiate BBB with a trim. I called up my good friend Lindsey, who I cheered with in college, and asked her if she would do the honors. She was much obliged, so today I went and visited her in her salon. We went for the basic trim and style.

I felt obligated to take the whole "wet hair parted down the middle" photo. It's by far my most unattractive look, therefore, I thought you might enjoy it. After Lindsey washed my hair, thoroughly gave me the best scrub and head massage EVER, and then trimmed my hair, we measured it to give a baseline number to track my hair growth. My hair, from the top of my scalp to the bottom layer going down my back, measures 16.5 inches. It also currently has 2.5 inches of grow out. Not bad for a starting point!

After she took my measurements, she asked how I wanted it styled. My first reaction was "big and curled!" since I won't be able to do that again for the whole next year. See, my hair is very straight and has absolutely no body what-so-ever... so I wanted my last big BANG to be, well, a bang.

Wow-- After 4 months of not doing my hair (I haven't had it done since late May), the color still looks pretty good! I wonder how long that will last...

Just in case any of you in the Boise/Meridian area are wondering... Lindsey works at Grand Illusion Salon in Meridian. The salon's phone number is (208) 888-7966 and I recommend her wholeheartedly. She is a sweetheart and knows how to make your hair look bomb-dot-com good.

As for my last "big hair" day... I really enjoyed it. I am loving this curl that Lindsey gave me, and I'm fairly sure it will last me through tomorrow. Wednesday, though, I'm out of luck. As I head home this evening, I have to store away all of my styling tools, like my blow dryer and straightener. I also have absolutely no hair products in the house right now besides for shampoo, conditioner, and a leave-in conditioner. It feels slightly weird (I really am addicted to hairspray, I think). I can't wait to see where this project goes when it takes off. Or if it will even get off the ground at all...

One Last Big Bee-utiful Weekend.

In lieu of sacrificing all things "big hair" on Tuesday, I decided to have a super fun weekend of doing my hair.  I didn't go crazy... but I did make sure to do it. I was very amused because I was even asked, "Um, will you reconsider this whole project? I like the way it looks now!" It was very cute.

Friday, for the Boise State Game, I teased my hair up and curled it. I kept it pretty casual, since I had to be at work all day.

Saturday, I went out around the town. I decided to go straight and teased. When I tease my hair I don't tease it too big. I just like to give it some good body.

I look angry! I'm not, I promise!

And THAT is my current hair length. Tomorrow I'm heading in for a trim and a final blowout to get this whole thing started. I can't wait to give up my hairspray, teasing comb and blow dryer. I wonder what I will be saying in a mere 7 days...

Back To My Roots.

Almost everyone who knows me thinks of me as a blonde. See, for the first 13 years of my life, I was. Then my fabulous Auntie Al came and visited us in Oklahoma and gave me my first highlights (right in the front, just the 2 pieces on each side of the part... remember that style?). It was love at first highlight. I was addicted. In fact, I've created a little photo-blog of my hair escapades over the years for you to peruse. I hope you enjoy.

Growing up, my hair was always super-blonde. That's me on the left. My sister is on the right.

The day after I graduated high school in June of 2005, I dyed my hair brunette for the first time. It really made my sister and I look like twins!

For the first two years of college from 2005-2007, my hair was long and blonde.

During junior year of college in August of 2007, I chopped my hair off and dyed it brunette again. Some days it looked really nice.

However, some days it just looked downright scary.

During senior year of college in 2009, I dyed my hair blonde and let it grow back out. Then, in February of 2010, a couple months before graduation, I chopped it off and went really blonde. It was super fun.

Once again in the mood for change, exactly a year later, I dyed it brunette again. This photo was from this past February 2011.

In April of 2011, I decided that short and brunette was not working for me, so I lightened it again and had extensions glued in. They lasted a whole month before I couldn't handle them anymore.

My most recent photo, from September of 2011, shows my current color and a little bit of my roots. Oh, and there's also little Miss Moxie May, who is just too cute.

Needless to say, I have been on a hair coloring, cutting, and different style SPIRAL since the age of 13. I really have no idea what my natural hair color is, what my hair looks like when it isn't over-processed, or what my hair is going to do without hairspray and teasing over the next year. 

Some people have suggested that I either highlight my hair or dye it darker before Tuesday, the beginning of Bye Bye Beehive 365. In my opinion, that would defeat the purpose of the next 365 days. I am going for healthy, natural hair. So I'm going to leave it as it is, roots and all. And I'm going to get back in touch with my roots. For the first time in a long time.